The Great Disappearing Act

When I was a little, one of my aunts showed me a magic trick that just amazed me. She showed me a regular playing card and then made it disappear. I can remember being in awe and amazement of her and begging to know how it was done. She never did tell me but the disappearing act stuck with me. ABC News reported Monday night of a disappearing act of a different kind. This act is on a much larger scale and could affect the lives of tens of thousands of people. This act is currently in the process of happening before the world's eyes and many people still don't believe the act is real. What is this mystical act? Global warming and its effects. There is a group of small islands in the Pacific Ocean called the Republic of Kiribati (pronounced 'kiribas'), which is in serious trouble because of the effects of global warming. Kiribati is technically the size of three Alaskas but most of that is saltwater. The amount of livable land is smaller than New York City. Google Earth can't even find an island to show; all it can find is water. The average altitude of Kiribati is around six feet. Naturally, this island is an easy target for submersion into the Pacific. Kiribati is home to over 100,000 people. These people have a good lifestyle built for themselves. The average life expectancy is 60 years. The Kiribati government, hoping to increase opportunities for its people, placed a great emphasis on education and today, the literacy rate is above 90 percent. To put this in perspective, India's literacy rate was only 61 percent and the United States' was 99.9 percent in 2005. Kiribati's president Anote Tong recently went to the United Nations and his report shocked people around the world. The Pacific Ocean is rising because of global warming, he reported, and submerging his country. Kiribati will be completely submerged in 50 years. What will happen to those 100,000 people? Where will they go? Is this problem something we could have prevented? Only now is the world beginning to accept that global warming is a problem that must be addressed. Monday, the United States Supreme Court told the Environmental Protection Agency they must address the issue of global warming. The EPA for years has said that it has no jurisdiction in the global warming process but now it is being forced to decide whether or not global warming is a problem. The EPA needs to begin addressing this problem before it is too late. The world needs to work together to solve this urgent problem. Kiribati's President Tong thinks it is too late for Kiribati. He said the momentum is already going and at this point, cannot be stopped. Now you see it, now you don't. Which country is next? Michelle Pattison is a junior majoring in English education. She can be reached at mpattison1@indstate.edu